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Local officials head to Washington to talk about recent lake flooding

Flooding at an RTS bus loop in Irondequoit
Alex Crichton
/
WXXI News
Flooding at an RTS bus loop in Irondequoit

Several local officials will be in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday to meet with members of the local Congressional delegation and others about the recent flooding along the Lake Ontario shoreline.

Monroe County Executive Cheryl Dinolfo says she will be urging area representatives to put pressure on the United States’ appointees on the International Joint Commission.  That U.S. – Canadian panel helps regulate the flow of Lake Ontario.

A number of local residents and officials have blamed actions by the IJC for recent flooding, although members of that organization and the U.S Army Corps of Engineers have maintained that most of the issue is due to weather factors including rain during the Spring that was much heavier than usual.

Dinolfo says she will also pursue federal funding for residents and businesses impacted and advocate for closer monitoring of lake levels. She will also push for creating physical barriers to mitigate the affects of high water.

Congressman Chris Collins, a Western NY Republican says other members of Congress who will be at the Washington meeting including his fellow Republicans John Katko and Claudia Tenney. There will also be local officials from Monroe, Wayne, Orleans and Niagara Counties.

Randy Gorbman is WXXI's director of news and public affairs. Randy manages the day-to-day operations of WXXI News on radio, television, and online.